Friday BP, 5/17/19

Three years ago yesterday, Tim Lincecum signed with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, or whatever they are called, officially ending his tenure as a Giant. The Giants had shown interest in possibly reuniting with Lincecum in a relief capacity, but he was able to find a starting spot in the Angels’ rotation and is still pitching there to this day.

/is tapped politely on the shoulder by FanGraphs

Yep. Still employed, still mowing down batters. You can’t convince me otherwise.

/is slapped in the face by Baseball Reference

Ow. Fine. In nine starts with the Angels, Lincecum pitched 38.1 innings and gave up 39 earned runs for an ERA of 9.16 and a 7.16 FIP. There! Are you happy? No. None of us are.

Lincecum has not pitched in a major league game ever since, and that will always make me very sad. I mean, not as sad as watching him pitch for the Angels (and his last few starts for the Giants) did, but pretty close.

He got another opportunity last season with the Texas Rangers, where he was garnering the kind of hype that is usually reserved for his most rabid San Francisco fans. Talks of him being the future closer amounted to nothing, however, as he never threw a single pitch for the Rangers.

His season was initially delayed, due to the death of his brother. Then a blister issue caused him to be sent on a lengthy rehab assignment. This is the last report of his professional pitching career, so far, from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Lincecum finished his rehab assignment with a 1-1 record and a 5.68 ERA over 12 2/3 innings over 10 appearances. The right-hander didn’t allow an earned run in his final three games, but opponents batted .280 against him and he walked nine while striking out only 10.

”He understood,” Daniels said. “He was very appreciative of the opportunity.”